Hiring partners don't mention it, would-be associates won't touch the subject, and law schools would rather avoid the issue altogether. But the possibility of failing the bar exam becomes a reality for tens of thousands of law school graduates each year.
And it's getting worse.
Last month, lawyer hopefuls across the country sat for the bar exam, many taking a second shot at the rite of passage after failing the test in July. If the results for February's test-takers are in keeping with recent pass rates, plenty of those graduates -- or the majority, in many jurisdictions -- will face failure once again.
"It is a terrible blow," said Robert Williams, hiring partner at Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton in Los Angeles. Although he said his firm only has one or two new associates who fail the bar exam "about every other year," California is notorious for flunking its examinees. Just 44 percent passed the test in 2004, the latest year that numbers were available from the National Conference of Bar Examiners.
Nationwide, some 28,110 people failed the test in 2004, for a 64 percent pass rate. By comparison, 65 percent passed in 2000 and 70 percent passed in 1995.
Some observers point to higher pass scores required by some states as the culprit, others note a proliferation of new and unaccredited law schools, and still others blame a lack of preparation provided by all law schools. Indeed, the situation has become such a concern that law schools have begun implementing for-credit bar review courses into their curricula.
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